Van contract hire customers warned of social network menace
Friday 26 February 2010 Back to Blog
Van contract hire drivers should be on the look out for careless drivers using social networking sites while behind the wheel following the results of a new survey.
A study by Halfords has found that one in 20 drivers admit to reading a post on sites such as Facebook and Twitter via their mobile phones whilst on the road.
Furthermore, two per cent said they had actually posted a message on one of the sites themselves while driving at the same time.
Illegal mobile phone use in general is also at a high level - 31 per cent admitted to taking a call and 22 per cent have made a call themselves.
Texting is also a problem, the study found, with 18 per cent typing out a message while on the go.
However, it seems that many drivers may well have been dishonest in the study, meaning the real figures are actually much higher.
According to Halfords, 52 per cent have been a passenger in a vehicle while the driver has made or received a phone call.
The fixed penalty for being caught for using a mobile phone behind the wheel is a £60 fine and three points on the perpetrator's license.